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NEW DELHI, March 3 (AFP) - India said Monday that Pakistan was playing a political game by wrongly blaming it for deferring a meeting of communication ministers from the South Asia Association of Regional Cooperation.

"Prior to this postponement, the participation of India was under the consideration of the Government of India as part of the normal process for deputation of ministers and officials to travel abroad," India's foreign ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna told reporters.

"Pakistan has preempted and announced a postponement. They did the same for the summit, by announcing a postponement a month before the event," he added.

"It obviously serves their narrow political interests to make these moves and blame India for them."

Sarna denied that India was causing any obstructions to the activities of SAARC and said the intention was to visit the summit before the postponement.

"It is Pakistan's commitment that has always been in doubt," he said

The second meeting of communication ministers from the seven-nation regional body was to be held in the Pakistan capital in the first week of March.

But Pakistan's foreign ministry on Saturday announced a postponement and blamed it on India's non-availability.

It had also indefinitely postponed the SAARC summit which was to be held in Islamabad in January, after India failed to confirm whether Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee would attend.

SAARC, founded in 1985, groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

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